Lava Leaves

Each year, Autumn leaves rain down from trees. . .

. . .lava-like upon the pavement. . .

. . .completing the life-cycle begun last Spring. . .

 

Nature's fiery "coins", laying there just for the taking! 

Get 'em while they're hot!

Quenching a City's Thirst

Earlier this summer, after being closed for 40 years, the High Bridge, formerly an aqueduct,  re-opened to public pedestrian traffic.  Spanning the Harlem river at the northern edges of  the Bronx and Manhattan, it was originally constructed in the mid-1800's to meet the growing demand for fresh water in response to the City's explosive industrial and residential growth at that time. 

Construction of the High Bridge was completed in 1848, bringing fresh water from the Croton River, 40 miles away in Westchester county to an increasingly thirsty city.. Over 100 feet high and close to 2000 feet in width, it was considered to be a major engineering feat at the time,




Yet, less than 20 years later, demand was already outpacing the capacity of the High Bridge's two original 3-foot pipes, and a 7.5-foot one was added. The aqueduct remained in service until the 1950s. 

This pattern of escalating demand for water continues unabated even today.  Two major projects-- the High Bridges of our time-- have been undertaken to meet this challenge. One is the Third Water Tunnel and the other is the Croton Water Filtration project.

In 1954 the City recognized and began planning for ways to improve the dependability of the City's water supply system.  In 1970 construction finally began on the Third Water Tunnel. This project is not expected to be completed until 2020.  Like the High Bridge, the source of the water flowing through it also originates in Westchester county.  At a cost of 6 billion dollars and a length of  316,800 feet (or 60 miles) it will ultimately have the capacity to deliver 1.3 billion gallons of water daily to NYC residents.  It is considered to be one of the "...largest and most complex public works projects ever attempted", not only in the city, but the country as well.

The Croton Water Filtration Plant, on the other hand, began construction seven years ago and was just completed and brought online this past May.  It is located under a section of Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, "inside an excavated area big enough to hold Yankee Stadium". Again, like the High Bridge once did, it will bring water from the Croton watershed and is capable of treating as much as 290 million gallons of water a day, about one-third of the total daily citywide demand.  Understandably it too has been cited as one of the largest construction projects in the City’s modern history.

However, will projects of even this colossal scale be enough to slake the City's thirst? If the past is any indication, maybe only for just a little while.  According to the census, the City's population continues to grow, and faster than original estimates anticipated.  At 8.5 million people, it has already surpassed projections for 2020!

At some point the City may just finally reach its limits-- either that of ingenuity or of nature.

PoetryPeek: Reminders

by J. Lanier

That great big puddle at the corner
obstacle to my crossing

Reminds me that
this stranded spring shower remnant 

also seeks its purpose:

to return to earth and nurture life

That sludgy liquid
pooled around the sewer grate

Reminds me that 
this stagnant trickle was once 
part of a million clear raindrops

falling urgently from the sky 

during a summer storm

Those piles of leaves

rustling along urban concrete

eddied by autumn winds

Remind me that
they too seek to complete their cycle 

beginning / ending in the sky and 

ending / beginning in earth's crumbly dark womb

That slushy, icy snow
slippery winter nuisance to older bones

Reminds me that 
      we all have a place and purpose

If we can only find

 how we fit

            together

Gratitude

Trees provide so many "gifts". . .

 






. . .beauty

  delight

      shade. . .
cooling 

   . . .habitat
            shelter

      food. . .

. . .oxygen

Give thanks and hug a tree sometime!

Organic Currency

It's that time of year again. . .

. . . who says money doesn't grow on trees?

  

. . .Pssst! It does!

So do help yourself!

When It Rains...

GuestPeek: Fresh From the Balcony!

My friend Jennifer and her boyfriend, grow edibles on their balcony.  I'd been asking her to send pix for while and she finally did!

Pictured here are lettuce and kale.

Thanks Jennifer!

GuestPeek: Neighborly Gardening

A brief but unexpected break between posts at the Empathic Writer blog (authored by Erik Harris) prompted some concern on the part of her listeners/readers. In response, Erika was quick to assure us that all was well. Not to worry!

With the arrival of the warmer weather she had turned some of her attention to a few outdoor projects, one being several vegetable and herb beds she and her neighbors had planted in a shared residential yard.

 



Engagement with nature and one's neighbors in the real world, is a wonderful excuse for taking a break from the virtual one!

Erika, thanks so much for sharing these shots of your shared
gardening space with us here at Permie Peeks!

Times Square: Solar in the City

A waste management, reduction and recycling initiative. . .

. . .in one of the world's most heavily trafficked public spaces. . .

. . .supported by the sun.

Path to Paradise

The future site. . .

. . .of my Indoor Edible Garden Paradise. . . !

. . .bringing a little bit of the outdoors inside. . .

Stay tuned!

Messy Retreat?

Is Spring on the way. . .

. . .or will Winter stay. . .

. . . a little longer. . .

. . . ?

Factory District

One of the primary functions of a leaf is to receive and capture energy from the sun and convert it into food, also known as photosynthesis.

Plants provide, not only for their own needs, but other living things as

well . . .sort of like local and individual, green, factories. In fact the term photosynthesis, literally means "to put together with light".

Now, how fabulous is that?!

Washington Square "Industrial" Park, NYC

Taking this a step further, we might think of clusters of plants, as solar-powered, industrial parks!

Side by Side Seasons

Leaf Drop

It's that time of year again. . .

free for the taking. . .

Get 'em while supplies last!

Liquid Assets

Here in the Big Apple, it's been an unusually rainy summer so far, with more predicted next week.

However, the urban hard-scape makes it difficult for the rain to 
find its way back into the earth. Instead, it is channeled 
into the city's sewer system. This system can quickly 
become overwhelmed, especially during 
heavy rain (or snow) storms.

This often results in CSOs ("combined sewer overflows"), which cause untreated waste-water to discharge directly into local waterways.

The use of "green infrastructure", gradually being implemented through PlaNYC and other programs, can help to mitigate this problem. By storing these excess flows for slower release back into the environment, or for future use, which can also be thought of as "yields".

But until such strategies become more widespread, every time it rains, it's like leaving money on the table!

Hmmm. . . .maybe clouds really do have silver linings!

RePeek: A.T(ree).M.

It's that time of year again. . .

. . .the leaves are falling. . .

Don't miss this year's give-away!